Closure
by Random Guise
Summary: Based on the movie Capricorn One. This short starts with a synopsis of the movie and continues where the movie ended with what would have been an extended ending. I don't own these characters, but I did build model rockets as a kid.


**A/N: Spoiler alert, I summarize the movie Capricorn One in the first section before moving directly into the story.**

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Closure

 _It's extraordinarily rude to show up at your own funeral. True, most expect the deceased to be there; just not in any sort of active capacity. In Colonel Charles Brubaker's case, there wasn't even supposed to be a body. He and his fellow astronauts Lt. Colonel Peter Willis and Commander John Walker were burnt to ash on reentry after traveling back from the first manned mission to Mars. The urns that were buried in Arlington were ceremonial, their actual remains reported to be scattered over the Pacific after the heat shield on the Capricorn One mission separated while scorching through the Earth's atmosphere; a man-made meteor that burned up before reaching the ground._

 _That was the story anyway. The President believed it, Vice-President Price believed it, and even Congressman Hollis Peaker who supported the program more than any other politician believed it. Almost everyone believed it, not because they wanted to but because that's what they were told. The TV showed it, the radio played it, and the newspapers printed it._

 _But it wasn't the truth._

 _A critical flaw was found in the life support system months before the flight. A few select people knew of the flaw, and it was decided to continue on with the flight preparations anyway, so that even the astronauts were unaware of the true state of the mission. In the last moments before launch the astronauts were secretly pulled from their capsule and the flight proceeded without them; video and audio was manipulated to make it appear they were on the flight as planned while they were sequestered in an abandoned air base in the desert. Mission Director Dr. James Kelloway broke the news to the astronauts and managed to convince and threaten them enough to go along with the ruse and that it would go very badly for their families and the program if the sham was revealed._

 _It may have been pulled off, but an unexpected malfunction of the heat shield caused the unmanned capsule to burn up on reentry to Earth. Realizing they were now a liability and officially dead, the three astronauts escaped the base and fled into the desert and split up; after some time Willis and Walker were found._

 _Meanwhile, an investigative reporter named Robert Caulfield noticed a few irregularities and began looking into the matter when one of the console operators disappeared without a trace, erased from existence. After being set up and nearly killed, he managed to hire a plane to look for the astronauts and found Brubaker in the desert. Caulfield managed to get him back just in time for his own funeral._

…

From out in the hallway it sounded like a riot was taking place behind the closed doors. The Secret Service agents guarding either side made sure the riot didn't spread any further. It was late afternoon of the day of the funeral, and chaos reigned. All network feeds had been cut, and reporters were shut out of the proceedings as information was gathered.

Inside, people yelled, others cried, and everyone tried to talk at once. No one was able to establish any type of order as explanations and accusations flew like leaves in a whirlwind, with much the same result as people repeated themselves time and again in an attempt to be understood. Unseen, a man entered through a side door and stepped up on a platform to a podium that had been in the private room before the impromptu meeting. A Secret Service agent, on orders, fired a round into the ceiling and everyone immediately stopped in mid-sentence.

"I am sorry about that folks, but we MUST have calm in order to determine a course of action at this critical juncture. Now that I have your attention, let us continue" the President of the United States said as he loosened his tie.

The fever pitch in the room died down and remained relatively quiet as the audience held its collective breath.

"Please, everyone, be seated" the President pleaded.

As if noticing the chairs for the first time, the people found those nearest to them and sat; oddly enough they did it mostly by feel, as most of their eyes remained glued to the man speaking. Brubaker and his wife Kay had eyes only for each other. Dr. Kelloway's eyes were on a notebook he was writing in.

The President resumed. "Let me preface my remarks by saying I have no knowledge of events other than what we've all seen from our public news sources. From the small amount of new information I've gathered, I fear that this will turn out to be a disgrace for not only NASA but our country as well. That being said, as President I take full responsibility for what happens on my watch and we will find the truth…"

…

Two days later the President met privately with Brubaker, Congressman Hollis Peaker, several heads of NASA and a few cabinet members. The reporter Caulfield was there on Brubaker's insistence; Brubaker's wife was not, only on the personal assurance of the President himself that her husband would be safe.

"Where's Dr. Kelloway?" Brubaker asked, looking around. "If he's not here I hope you have him under lock and key."

"Dr. Kelloway…is dead" the President responded. "Shortly after our big…eh...meeting that you were part of, he was found dead in a locked bathroom. We don't know yet if it was a heart attack, self-inflicted or he was killed somehow. He did leave a note that I have a copy of." He handed a sheet of paper to the astronaut.

Charles studied the paper. It was a photocopy, of a smaller piece of paper. It did appear to be Kelloway's handwriting, and it spoke of taking ultimate blame for the fake mission and apologizing to NASA and the American people. It was a briefer version of the speech he had given the astronauts to convince them to go along with the plan. He expressed remorse for the death of a console operator, and he spoke of the small comfort that the three astronauts hadn't died upon returning to Earth and his hopes for the future of the program without him.

"Looks like Jim to me" Brubaker shrugged as he handed the note to Caulfield.

"We think so too, but we're analyzing it to make sure" the President confirmed. "There is a chance it could have been faked by someone else to make it look like he was the top."

"He wasn't" Brubaker acknowledged. "He told me 'There are people out there, forces out there – who have a lot to lose. It has gotten out of control, it is too big.' Then he threatened our families and we went along."

"You should never have been put in that position in the first place. We accept our failures with our victories; it's the American way."

"It's the HUMAN way" Caulfield interjected.

"Well said" the President agreed. "Congressman Peaker, NASA is your baby. Anything there?"

"Mr. President, we've identified a few key people that were in on it. There is a Dr. Bergen who worked directly under Kelloway that was in the know, and a few personnel at the air base that served as a studio. It was very compartmentalized and few actually knew what was going on."

"Dr. Bergen helped finger my friend Elliot Whitter when he first reported irregularities in the telemetry" Caulfield added. "He got erased, like he never existed."

"We've been in contact with his family" Peaker spoke up. "Rest assured, he existed. There's small hope, but we don't have a body yet."

Bodies. "Give me that note back" Brubaker said as he snatched the paper back from Caulfield. "The three hadn't died returning from Earth. Why would he say that? Why not just take responsibility for their deaths like he did for Whitter?"

"Probably because they were national heroes" one of the cabinet members suggested.

"No, that's not Jim. He's all in or all out, no between; the man is deliberate to a fault." He snapped his fingers. "There's only one explanation. He…didn't…order…their…deaths" Brubaker concluded.

"Maybe someone else killed them without authorization" a NASA chief blurted.

"Would some operative in NASA do that kind of a thing without authority? Would the military? Not and keep your ass for long. No, I think they're still out there somewhere. Bring them home Mr. President; maybe it's a chance to unwidow a couple of great women and give their kids a dad back."

With a determined look the President growled "Let me make a few calls. If they're out there, we'll find them."

…

"On three. One…two…three…"

Several soldiers used a battering ram to breach a locked metal door. It resisted, and then finally swung open on the second impact. Two more soldiers rushed in to sweep the room, which turned out to be a small cell with only a single ceiling bulb for illumination. In a corner, a man curled up in a fetal position.

"No more, no more, I won't do it!" he yelled, cringing.

Brubaker rushed into the cell and grabbed the man, shaking him. "John! John! It's Bru. I've come to get you, man."

The prisoner looked blankly at Brubaker. A light seemed to flicker in his eyes. "Bru? Is that you?"

"Yeah John, it's me. Are you ready to go see Betty and the kids?"

"Betty? Betty? I remember Betty…" he said as he started to sob while the two men hugged.

On another floor the scene was repeated a few minutes later, except the prisoner was found sitting against a wall, staring into space.

"Pete, it's Bru. Rescue time, friend."

"Rescue time?"

"Yeah, Sharon called and said she has an extra ticket for Sandy's play. What do you say we get out of here and go see it?"

"Play? Oh, Peter Pan. Yeah. Funny, the actors don't really fly - it's all fake you know, wires and stuff."

Back in the evacuation helicopter, all three astronauts rode together. Brubaker continued to assure them everything was going to be okay. "Even the President has made a speech telling the American people it was a fake. Kelloway's dead and heads are rolling. We're back alive again, guys."

"Good" Pete sighed. "Tell 'em to put those commemorative folded flags away for at least a few decades, will ya?"

The End

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 **A/N: I saw this in the theater, and the chase scene with the crop duster is one of the best aerial sequences I've ever watched. But I thought the end of the movie needed a little extra, and I wanted the guys home again.**


End file.
